Boat anchors and means for manipulating same



July 19, 1966 R ELLIS 3,261,319

BOAT ANCHORS AND MEANS FOR MANIPULATING SAME Filed Sept. 17, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet l N44" NA.

United States Patent 3,261,319 BOAT ANCHORS AND MEANS FOR MANIPULATING SAME Robert Ellis, Solana Beach, Calif., assignor to Robert E. Peterson, Downey, Calif. Filed Sept. 17, 1964, Ser. No. 397,192 14 Claims. (Cl. 114210) This invention relates to boat anchors and means for manipulating same and the principal object of the invention is the provision of a boat anchor and operating means in which the anchor may be either cast out into the water or hauled into the boat from any prescribed location on the boat instead of the heretofore necessity of personally going to the bow of the boat and manually performing these arduous operations.

Another object of the invention is the provision of means for locating the mechanism used for this operation directly in the center of and at the tip of the bow, thus preventing yawing of the anchored boat caused by wind.

Other and further objects will appear in the specifications and be specifically pointed out in the appended claims, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings exemplifying the invention in which:

FIG. 1 is a top view of the bow of the boat showing the mechanism,

FIG. 2 is a longitudinal section on line 22 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a section on line 44 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a partial front view of the bow while the anchor is being hauled aboard.

FIG. 6 is a sectional detail showing means for pulling the anchor shank into and through the hole at the end of anchor arm.

FIG. 7 is a top view showing a more clarified illustration.

FIG. 8 is a section on line 8-8 of FIG. 7, including Wiring diagram.

Referring to the drawings in which like characters and numerals of reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views, the numeral 7 denotes the bow of the boat and 8 the deck thereof. Attached by fasteners 9 onto the deck is the longitudinal base 10 having a longitudinal slot 11 therein as shown, see FIG. 1. A transverse shaft 12, mounted in bearings 13 is at the forward end of slot 11. Mounted at approximately right angles to each other are projecting anchor arm 14 and pulley arm 15 to shaft 12 as better illustrated in FIGS. 2, 3 and 4, bolt 16 allowing adjustable attachment thereto. Helical springs 17, encircling shaft 12, have one end of each spring attached to the arms 14 and 15 at 18 while the other end of each spring is attached to the bearing at 19, see FIGS. 3 and 4. The arms 14 and 15 may therefor be in tensional relation with bearings 13.

The bearings 13 are attached to the bottom of deck 8 by means of fasteners 20. To the outer end of anchor arm 14 is an elongated hole 21 through which the anchor rope 23 passes followed by the anchor shank 22, the disclike fluke 24 always remaining on the other side of arm 14. At the outer end of pulley arm 15 is mounted, between the two parallel arms thereof, the rope pulley 25, over which anchor rope 23 passes as better illustrated in FIG. 2. This rope 23 then passes through slot 11 in base 10, through slot 26 in deck 8 and around fixed pulley 27 to any desirable rope manipulating means such as a reel 28, rotated by handle 29 in the direction of arrow 30 when hauling the anchor aboard. A ratchet wheel 31 together with pawl 32 prevents rope 23 from unwinding in the direction of arrow 33. It will be apparent that any appropriate mechanical or electrical means may be employed for manipulating rope 23, either 3,261,319 Patented July 19, 1966 in the direction of arrow 33 or 34. It is well within my understanding and capability to design an electrical pushbutton control for manipulating rope 23 to either cast the anchor into the water or haul it into the boat in conjunction with the mechanism herein disclosed. On small boats the anchor rope 23 would be manipulated by hand. The rope 23 passes through hole 35 in the upper end of shank 22, see FIG. 6, where it is prevented from pulling out by clamp 36. Separate circular beads 37 and 38 loosely encircle the rope 23 as shown, the upper head 37 being slightly smaller in girth than the lower bead 38 and which bead is also slightly smaller than the rounded upper end 39 of shank 22. It will also be noted that the lower ends or base of each bead nest into the upper rounded end of the next lower bead or rounded end 39 of shank 22. With this arrangement, the anchor shank 22 can easily be pulled into and through the chamfered hole 21 at outer end of anchor arm 14 at an angle as illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 6, the beads providing the proper bevel and swinging the rounded tip 39 of shank 22 away from the edge of hole 21, where it might otherwise be jammed, towards the center of hole 21.

The operation of this boat anchor is as follows; assuming the anchor is being hauled into the boat, see FIG. 2, the anchor rope 23 being pulled in the direction of arrow 34 around fixed pulley 27 and pulley 25 at end of pulley arm 15, the anchor being indicated by dotted lines 24A, the anchor arm 14 being cantilevered over the bow of the boat as indicated by the dotted lines 14A, in this manner permitting the anchor to be hauled up without its edges scraping the side of the boat. This is also the extreme outward position of the anchor arm 14A as urged by the springs 17, the upper side of the flat base 10 preventing further downward movement thereof. During this operation, the pulley arm occupies a position indicated by the dotted lines 15A, its upright position permitting a satisfactory angular pull on the rope 23 so that the shank 22A will be pulled through elongated hole 21 at the end of anchor arm 14A up to the fluke 24A. At this point, as there can be no further movement of the anchor relative to the anchor arm, the anchor arm 14A is pulled upward, against tension of springs 17, into the position shown by the full lines, the shank 22 being now at an acute angle relative to anchor arm 14, due to elongated hole 21, as will be readily understood, the pulley arm 15 now being at right angles thereto, as shown. A still further pull on rope 23 will cause the pulley 25 to describe the are 40, the pulley arm 15 passing through longitudinal slot 11 in base 10 and slot 26 in deck 8 and assume the vertical position illustrated by dotted lines 153, the rope 23 meanwhile being detached from pulley 25 and transferring its pull directly to the anchor shank 22 which at the next moment passes through slots 11 and 26 in an upside down position as shown by dotted lines 22B, the fluke 24B coming to rest upside down onto top of deck 8 where it is inconspicuous as well as out of the way. During this operation, the springs 17 have been resisting this one-half rotation of shaft 12 so that, when the rope 23 is released from its fastening, the anchor will immediately reverse its heretofore described trajectory and plunge into the water, automatically, the springs 17 being the motive power in this instance.

To prevent side strain onto the cantilever extending anchor arm 14 when the boat is at anchor, the arm 14 is flanked on each side by the front end of base 10 which is securely bolted to deck 8 by fasteners 9. Chocks 41 may be on either side of base 10, see FIG. 5, for further strength and convenience, a rope 42 being shown therein, the forward and central placing of this anchor manipulating means therefor not interfering with the subsequent operation of mooring the boat. Also, it is quite customary, excepting in some smaller boats, to

secure a flag-pole socket at the tip of the bow, and as it is herein now necessary to displace same by this anchor manipulating means, the fiag-pole socket 43 is herein secured to the meeting ends of two curved arms 44, the other end of each arm being attached to opposite gunwales of the boat at 45, the socket 43 thus being directly over the tip of the bow as heretofore, the flagpole being indicated by 46 and not interfering with the manipulation of the anchor as will be apparent, the curved arms 44 incidentally serving as a holding on means for fishermen, etc. It will be apparent that rope chocks may also be an inherent part of base 18 as indicated by numeral 48 in FIG. 5. It will also be noted that, when pulling up the anchor, the pull of the rope always remains at a practical angle, from its original vertical pull at the bow of the boat to its eventual upside-down position on deck, causing the anchor arm and the pulley arm together to execute a full half turn, the anchor arm covering slot 11 in base and deck 8 while pulley arm occupies a position underneath the deck in a depending vertical position at the front end of the how, when the anchor has been hauled into the boat.

In the above description the anchor rope was assumed to be pulled by either manual or mechanical means, depending on the size of the boat, etc., but when manipulate-d by power, such as an electric motor 51 which, through pinion 52 and gear 53 rotates the reel 28 on shaft 54 in the direction of arrow 30, the same mechanism may be used. An electro magnet 55, placed directly above pawl 32, see FIG. 8, will pull pawl upwards out of restraining contact with teeth of ratchet wheel 31 and permit the reel 28 to unwind rope 23 through spring tension applied to anchor arm 14 by springs 17 and cast anchor 24 into the water by swinging it into an 180 degree are as indicated by dotted line 40 when push button 56 is pressed, battery 57 furnishing the energy therefor. This part of the circuit is closed through wires 66, 67 and 68 together with battery 57 and push button 56. When sufiicient slack rope has been unwound from reel 28, pressure on button 56 is released, pawl again restrains reel from unwinding and the boat is at anchor. During this operation, limit switch 58, which had previously interrupted the circuit to motor 51, will now close through pull of spring 59 in the direction of arrow 66), closing the motor circuit through wires s1, 62, battery 57, wires 63 and 64 and push button 65, thus energizingmotor 51 and hauling in anchor 24 when push button 65 is pushed.

In FIG. 8 is illustrated means for manipulating the rope guide arm 15 by attaching it to anchor arm 14 with flexible pulling and restraining means such as chains 70 and 71, shown by dotted lines, on either side of guide arm 15, the other end of chain 70 being attached to arm 14 while the other end of chain 71 is attached to deck 8 as shown. This construction permits anchor arm 14 to gradually pull guide arm 15 forward, while anchor 24 is being cast, thus maintaining a suitable pulling angle on rope 23, the chain 71 preventing guide arm 15 from exceeding the preferred vertical position, as noted by numeral 1415. Dotted lines 23A denote positions of anchor rope during the movement of anchor 24 to that illustrated at 24A at the bow of the boat, While 23B indicates the rope while arm 15 is in vertical position. This construction eliminates the need for slot 11, either in base 10 or deck 8 shown in FIG. 2, and substitutes therefor the hole 26. In this latter case, FIGS. 7 and 8, the arm 14 is securely attached to shaft 12 as in FIG. 2, while arm 15 is loose to swing thereon, the chains 70 and 71 now controlling the movement of guide arm 15.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that I have evolved a boat anchor and manipulating means therefor which can be conveniently operated from the pilot house, the rear seat or any other desirable location on the boat, the boat thus being capable of being operated by one man instead of at least two, the manipulation of the anchor being also conveniently operable by means described in my Patent No. 3,068,828, issued December 18, 1962, depending largely on the size of the boat, etc., the anchor occupying an inconspicuous and non-interfering place on deck when the boat is under way or moored to a dock or tied to a mooring buoy, while the displaced flag-pole socket and running light may still be located at the tip of the bow of the boat, this anchor manipulating means being also adapt-able to be located on either side of the center of the bow of the boat as circumstances may dictate.

Various changes may be made in the embodiment of the invention hereinabove specifically described without departing mm or sacrificing the advantages of the invention as defined in the claims appended hereto.

I claim:

1. A boat anchor with means for manipulating same at a distance from the bow of the boat, a deck on the bow of the boat, an anchor having a shank, an anchor rope, one end of said rope being attached to the upstanding end of said shank, a shaft, bearings for said shaft, the said shaft being located transversely on said deck, an anchor arm, one end of said anchor arm being attached to said shaft while the other end thereof extends longitudinally forward partly over the tip of the bow of said boat when said anchor arm is swung into its maximum forward position, an elongated hole in the extended end of said anchor arm, the said elongated hole being adapted to receive the anchor rope and shank up to the fluke of said anchor, an aperture through said deck, said aperture being in register With said elongated hole in said anchor arm when said arm is swung rearward in an arc of 180 degrees, with means for pulling said rope through said aperture from underneath said deck so that the shank of said anchor will project vertically down through said aperture in said deck with the edge of the fluke of said anchor flush onto the upper surface of said deck, and means for manipulating said anchor rope.

2. A boat anchor as in claim 1, and spring means attached to and between said anchor arm and said bearings for continuously exerting forward pressure to said anchor arm.

3. A boat anchor as in claim 1, and a rope guide arm, said arm being of substantially the same length as said anchor arm, one end of said rope guide arm being rotatably mounted to said transverse shaft, and adapted to swing aft of said anchor arm, the other end of said rope guide arm being provided with a hole in register with the elongated hole in said anchor arm and adapted to guide said anchor rope and to provide a better angular pull to said rope as said anchor is being manipulated as aforesaid, and means for pulling said rope guide arm forwardly degrees behind said anchor arm by an attachment to said anchor arm as said anchor arm moves forward, and means for limiting the forward movement of said guide arm to not more than a vertical position on said deck.

'4. A boat anchor as in claim 1, the upper end of said anchor shank being rounded, and a rounded bead loosely encircling said rope at the upper end of said shank and being slightly smaller in diameter than the upper diameter of said shank and enabling said anchor to be pulled through aforesaid elongated hole in said anchor arm while said anchor rope is at an angle thereto.

5. A :boat anchor as in claim 1, and a plurality of beads encircling said anchor rope immediately above the upper end of said anchor shank, the said beads being rounded and each successive upper bead being of smaller diameter than the preceding head.

6. A boat anchor as in claim 1, and a pair of rope chocks at the bow of the boat, the said chocks being sep arated fro-m each other the exact distance of the width of the anchor arm and forming a nest therefor when said anchor arm is in horizontal forward position.

7. In a boat anchor with means for manipulating same at a distance from the bow of the boat, a mushroom type anchor, an anchor rope attached to the end of the shank thereof, a swingable anchor .arm, said arm being pivoted onto the bow of the boat and extending forwardly partly over the bow of the boat, said arm being normally spring tensioned forwardly, a hole in the extended end of said anchor arm, said hole adapted to receive the anchor rope and the anchor shank up to the flute of said anchor, a hole in the deck of said boat, said hole registering with the hole in the anchor arm when said anchor arm is forced rearward into horizontal position, the said anchor being adapted to be swung through a 180 degree are with the shank extending vertically downward through said hole in said deck while being guided by said anchor arm when said anchor rope is pulled from underneath said deck through said hole in said deck.

8. A boat anchor as in claim 1, said anchor manipulating means comprising an electric motor, a source of electric energy, a reel for winding said anchor rope, said reel being driven by said motor, a ratchet wheel attached to said reel, a pawl for preventing undesired unwinding of said reel, an electro-magnet for pulling said pawl away from restraining contact with the teeth of said ratchet wheel, a switch for closing the circuit to said electromagnet to prevent unwinding of said reel through the normal tension applied thereto by aforesaid springs app-lied to said anchor arm, an electric switch for actuating said electric motor to haul in the anchor partly against the tension of aforesaid springs, and a limit switch, said limit switch being automatically actuated to open the circuit of said electric motor by said anchor when said anchor is hauled onto its maximum on deck position.

9. A boat anchor with means for hauling same into an on dec position, said means comprising a swingable anchor arm pivoted transversely onto the deck at the bow of the boat, said arm adapted to partly overhang the bow and spring tensioned to swing longitudinally into an 180 degree arc, the said spring tension being continuously forward on said anchor arm, a hole in the end of said extension on said swingable anchor arm, said hole being adapted to guide an anchor rope there-through and to receive the shank of said anchor up to the fluke thereof, and a hole in the deck, said hole being in register with the hole in the end of said swingable anchor arm and being a guide for said anchor rope to be hauled therethrough from under the deck and to receive the anchor shank in a reversed position therein.

10. A boat anchor as in claim 9, and another swingable arm of substantially the same length as said swingable anchor arm, said additional swingable arm being also pivoted to the deck together with the swingable anchor arm, a hole in the other end of said addition-a1 swingable arm, said hole being in register with the hole in the swingable anchor arm and adapted to receive the anchor rope and anchor shank therethrough, the said additional arm being adapted to be swung aft of said anchor arm and to be gradually pulled into an upright position by an attachment to said swingable anchor arm as said anchor arm is passing its vertical position through the action of said springs.

11. A boat anchor as in claim 9, and a rope pulley, said :pulley being mounted underneath the deck in a substantially vertical line beneath said hole in the deck, and means for pulling said rope against the tension of aforesaid springs and the weight of said anchor, means for retaining said rope in desired position and means for releasing said rope from such position.

12. A boat anchor adapted to be manipulated from any selected part of the boat, said anchor and manipulating means comprising an anchor having a fluke and a shank extending upwardly at right angles thereto, an anchorrope, one end of said rope being attached to the upper end of said shank while the other end is attached to a rope pulling means, a transverse rotatable shaft on the deck at the bow of the boat, bearings for said shaft, helical springs encircling said shaft, an anchor arm one end thereof being attached to said shaft, an elongated opening at the outer end of said anchor arm, a pulley arm, one end of said pulley arm being also attached to said shaft at right angles and to the rear of said anchor arm, a rope pulley attached to the outer end of said pulley arm, the said anchor arm and pulley arm lbeing approximately the same length and the anchor arm being adapted to cantilever over the tip of the bow of the boat when the anchor is out, a rope pulley attached to the boat beneath the deck, said pulley being vertical-1y disposed below the said pulley at the outer end of said pulley arm when said lpulley arm is in a horizontal position on said deck, a longitudinal slot in said deck, said slot extending from above said pulley attached to the boat below said deck to said transverse shaft, the said rope passing from said anchor shank over said pulley at the outer end of said pulley arm and then through said slot in said deck and then over said pulley attached to the boat below the deck and to a rope manipulating means on said boat, the aforesaid helical springs encircling said transverse shaft being norm-ally tensioned to rotate said shaft so that the anchor arm will be in a cantilever position over the bow of the boat.

13. A boat anchor as in claim 12, the said anchor am being adapted to cover said longitudinal slot in said deck when the anchor is fully hauled into the boat.

'14. A boat anchor as in claim 12, the anchor being deposited in an upside down position onto the deck of the boat with the shank of the anchor extending through said longitudinal slot at one end thereof while the upper edge of the anchor fluke rests onto the floor of the deck when said anchor is fully deposited onto the boat.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,071,097 1/1963 Dowrelio 114-210 FERGUS S. MIDDLETON, Primary Examiner.

T. M. BLIX, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A BOAT ANCHOR WITH MEANS FOR MANIPULATING SAME AT A DISTANCE FROM THE BOW OF THE BOAT, A DECK ON THE BOW OF THE BOAT, AN ANCHOR HAVING A SHANK, AN ANCHOR ROPE, ONE END OF SAID ROPE BEING ATTACHED TO THE UPSTANDING END OF SAID SHANK, A SHAFT, BEARINGS FOR SAID SHAFT, THE SAID SHAFT BEING LOCATED TRANSVERSELY ON SAID DECK, AN ANCHOR ARM, ONE END OF SAID ANCHOR ARM BEING ATTACHED TO SAID SHAFT WHILE THE OTHER END THEREOF EXTENDS LONGITUDINALLY FORWARD PARTLY OVER THE TIP OF THE BOW OF SAID BOAT WHEN SAID ANCHOR ARM IS SWUNG INTO ITS MAXIMUM FORWARD POSITION, AN ELONGATED HOLE IN THE EXTENDED END OF SAID ANCHOR ARM, THE SAID ELONGATED HOLE BEING ADAPTED TO RECEIVE THE ANCHOR ROPE AND SHANK UP 